You are here:

Producing an Integrated Capability Roadmap for the Canadian Forces

Defence R&D Canada - Centre for Operational Research and Analysis, Ottawa ON (CAN)

Abstract

In 2005, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of the Canadian Forces (CF) mandated that Capability-Based Planning (CBP) be institutionalized as a part of a centrally driven, top-down approach to Force Development (FD) within the Department of National Defence (DND). Consequently, for the last three years military and defence analyst staffs have been developing and implementing the first iteration of an end-to-end capability-based FD process. The FD process will ultimately result in a scheduled list of programs necessary to meet the demands of the future security environment over the next 20 years. This capability plan will be published in a key departmental document: the Strategic Capability Roadmap (SCR). The FD process being implemented in DND consists of three parts: Capability Planning, Capability Management, and Capability Integration. The focus of this paper will be on the Capability Integration stage of the FD process. Within this stage a large set of alternative approaches to address the deficiencies identified by earlier stages are considered. A genetic algorithm-based optimization tool produces solutions offering best value for money and these preferred options form the basis of a 20-year roadmap (the SCR). The paper will describe the nature of the alternatives, the optimization approach and process by which the SCR is composed and approved.